A Christmas in PBS Town
by PerkyGoth14
Summary: Based mostly on "Arthur's Perfect Christmas". Henry decides to take Alexandra and some friends away from Cartoon Network City to spend the winter holidays in PBS Town. Henry helps the Read family see more about Christmas than presents or snow, especially for Arthur who wants the perfect holiday. Just sending this out here, if you guys like this story enough, there might be more...
1. Chapter 1

Our story begins in Cartoon Network City at the old Cartoon Cartoon Fridays studio which was made as like a local hang-out these days since CCF was long over these days. Today, there was a Christmas party going on before the actual holiday and there were many guests there, especially the old Cartoon Cartoon veterans and the classic Hanna-Barbera stars from before CCF was a thing. Right now, Henry Chan and Mike Mazinsky were talking with each other by the snack table.

"So... Let me get this straight..." Mike said. "You're gonna spend Christmas away from home?"

"Uh... Yeah?" Henry replied like it was obvious. "Is that a problem?"

"I just wanna make sure I have this story straight," Mike said. "Though, then again, I guess I shouldn't talk since I spent Christmas in Nicktropolis one year to be with Lil."

"So, why is it weird?" Henry asked.

"Just asking," Mike shrugged. "I'm gonna need some luck myself though for what I plan to do with Lil this year."

"Uh... You're not gonna ask her to marry you, are you?" Henry asked the tomboy. "I mean, aren't you like 11 or something?"

"I'm 13, and that's not what I meant," Mike replied. "I'm gonna visit the orphanage I used to live in with Lil, Jamie, Darcy, Jen, and Brick. I thought it'd be nice because they usually did great stuff for Christmas for the kids like a special show for us to be apart of if we wanted to."

"Well, that sounds pretty cool," Henry said. "I can't believe you left that place when you were young. You could've gotten killed or something."

"Yeah, but you have to remember that I'm not a normal kid," Mike told him. "None of us are really normal."

"Let it go... Let it go... Can't hold it in anymore~..." Dee Dee sang to herself as she danced in the background, dressed as Queen Elsa, as she used her ice powers along the way which made the floor into ice which made everybody else slip and fall from that.

"Ugh... See what I mean?" Mike groaned.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard," Henry said to Mike. "I know it'll be my first Christmas away from home, I just thought it would be fun. I won't be alone though, Alexandra will be there of course, along with Josie, Valerie, Melody, Kasey, and Alexandra's friends from New York City."

"That kid sure looks adorable," Mike smiled as she took a look at Jenny who walked around as Oliver followed her from the table next to her. "How old is she again?"

"She's 8 now," Henry replied. "She's very sweet for a rich girl."

"Remember, Oliver, these presents aren't yours." James told his sister's kitten.

Oliver let out a small mew in response.

"I was never really a cat person, but that kitten sure seems cool too," Mike remarked. "Well, I hope you have fun with... Uh... Where were you going again?"

"PBS Town," Henry replied. "It's mostly peaceful, probably aside from Hacker, Landon, and that case with Alison Kunz."

"Yeah, I have to agree," Mike nodded from that. "You really liked hanging out with the Read family, huh?"

"Yeah, I don't know why Duncan makes fun of babysitting, I think it's actually kinda fun," Henry said. "Seriously, what was that all about?"

"I dunno," Mike shrugged. "Duncan just thinks he's funny when he very painfully isn't."

"That's for sure." Henry said as he decided to get some Christmas punch.

Mike then walked off to see June, Dee Dee, and Lu while the Eds hung out with Og.

* * *

"Thanks for letting us come to PBS Town with you, Alexandra," Josie said to the former mean girl. "I just hope you don't have any reason to 'Hulk Out' down there."

"It's Christmas," Alexandra shrugged. "I don't think I'll have to unless maybe that Hacker guy tries to take Kasey away or Alison Kunz comes back to avenge the P-Pals again."

"But Alexandra, didn't you tell us that she got crushed to death?" Melody spoke up with a giggle.

"Well, yeah, but you can never tell with how villains can be," Alexandra said. "I'm pretty excited though for my first Christmas with Henry. I just hope that the other Chan siblings will be alright without Henry. Scooter and Mimi were pretty sad when he said he'd spend the holidays with us in PBS Town."

"Oh, I'm sure they'll be fine," James smiled as he came by with a cup of punch. "It might even be better than last Christmas when Mother, Father, Jenny, and I went to Moscow."

"You guys always travel to the coolest places." Josie replied.

"Don't I know it?" James beamed. "It'll be great to get to know you guys too since we hung out for Jenny's birthday before... Uh... Well... You know with Bill Sykes."

"Ugh, tell me about it," Valerie rolled her eyes. "I'm glad that guy is gone."

"For sure!" Melody added.

"I just hope you don't mind a late travel," James said. "Father says the best way to get to PBS Town is by limo."

"I'm fine either way," Josie smiled. "After all, we travel all the time with our band."

James chuckled a bit as he smiled warmly as he saw his little sister hanging out with the other little kids as she showed Oliver to them. Oliver smiled as he looked happy to see other kids, though he missed Dodger and the Company, but it was only temporary.

* * *

Eventually, the Christmas party ended and everybody went home.

"All right, guys, let's get ready to go," Henry said to the others. "It'll snow pretty soon, so we should leave before we get caught in the snow."

"Right." The others agreed to that.

"Melody, you look extra chipper right now." Henry said.

"I caught Stanley under the mistletoe," Melody giggled. "He was pretty surprised."

"I'm sure," Henry chuckled from that. "All right, let's meet up in about half an hour. That should be plenty of time to get ready. Hope you guys are ready for a Christmas in PBS Town."

Everybody smiled all around as they split up to go get their stuff ready for the upcoming holidays. Josie, Melody, and Valerie came to the hotel with the Foxworth siblings while Henry brought Alexandra and Kasey home to get their stuff and say goodbye to the family.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a bit of a long ride to PBS Town, a bit longer compared to taking a boat from the docks to travel the borders of the world as the group left Cartoon Network City. Alexandra smiled as she leaned against Henry as he held out his arm to hug her. Kasey looked out of the window softly.

"I know you're a little older than me, Kasey, but I hope we can be friends." Jenny spoke up to the other redheaded girl.

"I'm sure we could do that," Kasey smiled. "I didn't have much friends back home when I lived with my parents and Chrissy."

"Aw, don't be sad," Jenny coaxed. "I might be a rich girl, but I don't have many friends either. I do meet up with these two kids though named Mandy and Robert though who are pretty sweet. These girls Liz and Noelle don't always make it easy though."

"Do they bully you?" Kasey asked.

"Yeah, sometimes, but I just remember what James used to tell me," Jenny replied. "'If you stand up to bullies, they almost always stand down'."

"I believe your brother was told that from your parents as well." Winston chuckled from the front seat.

"Absolutely," Mrs. Foxworth replied. "It'll be nice to spend Christmas with all of you. Alexandra, how is your brother?"

"He seems alright," Alexandra said. "He just feels very protective around me a lot whenever I'm with Henry though."

"Boys..." Jenny playfully rolled her eyes which made her and Jenny giggle from that.

"Well, I look forward to the visit to PBS Town," Josie said. "I just hope we don't get bombarded with fans."

"Yeah, me too," Valerie added. "They should take a Christmas vacation too."

"I never get tired of attention," Melody giggled. "It makes me feel popular and loved."

"Ah, you shouldn't let fame be your reason for happiness," Mr. Foxworth said. "I think it's better if you do what you do for fun and not for the fame."

"I believe you're absolutely right, dear," Mrs. Foxworth cooed at her husband. "Why, don't you remember when I used to be a concert singer before we got engaged?"

"How could I forget?" Mr. Foxworth smiled. "You were always such a talented singer."

"Guess that's where Jenny got that talent from." James chuckled at his parents.

"I guess so," Jenny smiled bashfully as she pet Oliver in her hands. "I'm a little shy to sing in front of a crowd, but I usually have to sing for school in Music Class."

"I'm sure you sing just fine," Kasey replied. "I wish I could sing like you."

Henry looked up as they were near PBS Town now. "All right, this is it," he then said. "Now the Foxworth family will stay at the hotel with Josie, Valerie, and Melody, and Alexandra, Kasey, Shake, and I will stay with the Read family."

"That sounds good," Mrs. Foxworth said. "I'm glad they were able to take us."

"Of course they were, Natalie," Mr. Foxworth replied to his wife. "Time is money, my father used to tell me that."

They rode through town until they came to the hotel. The group left together to say their goodbyes as it was pretty late at night, but Henry reassured Winston that he, Alexandra, Kasey, and Shake could get to the Read house on their own just fine.

* * *

"Good night!" Alexandra called as she held Shake's leash. "See you tomorrow."

"I can't wait until the 12 days of Christmas," Melody beamed. "I swear it only feels like one day though."

"Oh, Melody." Josie and Valerie sighed from that.

Everybody else laughed a bit from that. Mr. Rogers handed them their keys as a young girl with long brown hair, a red vest with a long-sleeved white undershirt, a black skirt, white knee socks, and black dress shoes was shown to be sweeping up the floor with a broom.

"Henry? Alexandra? Who's this?" Jenny asked as she saw the other girl.

"Huh?" Alexandra asked before looking. "Oh, I haven't seen her before."

"Hey, long time no see," Mr. Rogers smiled as he recognized the two Hulk teens. "Isn't it a beautiful day in the neighborhood?"

"Um, sure, Mr. Rogers," Henry replied. "If you don't mind me asking, who's that girl with you?"

"Oh, you haven't met, I apologize," Mr. Rogers smiled. "Fredricka, come meet some old PBS Town visitors."

The girl looked over and came by.

"Um, hello there." Jenny greeted.

"Hi." The girl replied.

"Everybody, this is my great-niece, Fredricka," Mr. Rogers introduced. "Fredricka, this is Henry Chan and Alexandra Cabot. They came to visit with other friends of theirs quite some time ago."

"Are you the ones who helped against Alison Kunz?" Fredricka asked. "Uncle Fred told me about that time with her and the P-Pals with visitors from Cartoon Network City."

"Yeah, that's us," Henry smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Fredricka."

"It's nice to meet you too," Fredricka smiled back as she gave a curtsy. "Say, your friends there look like Josie and the Pussycats."

"What a coinky-dink!" Melody smiled from that. "_We're_ from Josie and the Pussycats!"

"Oh! Neat!" Fredricka beamed. "Say... Wasn't there a young girl with you?"

"Oh, you mean my sister Tabitha?" Josie replied. "She's spending Christmas with our parents. "I thought I'd explore a little bit."

"I'd hate to bother you, but could you maybe sign this for me?" Fredricka asked as she took out her CD of the band. "I'm a pretty big fan."

Josie, Melody, and Valerie smiled from that as they signed the CD cover for the girl. Fredricka beamed from that.

"What do we say?" Mr. Rogers prompted his grandniece.

"Oh! Thank you very much." Fredricka smiled.

"You're welcome." The band replied happily to meet a nice girl who was such a fan of them.

"So, you must be the Melody Valentine, Josie McCoy, and Valerie Brown I've heard about," Mr. Rogers smiled. "So who are the rest of you?"

"Hello, sir, my name is Gregory Foxworth," Mr. Foxworth replied. "This is my darling wife, Natalie Foxworth and our children: James and Jennifer Foxworth. Also, this is my very good friend: Winston Glover."

"And this is our kitten, Oliver." Jenny smiled as she carried her kitten happily.

"Such a charming little fellow." Mr. Rogers said.

"And this is our dog, Georgette," James said. "I hope it's okay if we brought some animals."

"That's fine by me," Mr. Rogers smiled. "Everybody is a friend to me."

"This is also my little sister, Kasey, and our dog, Shake," Alexandra said. "We're going to the Read house though."

"That sounds nice," Mr. Rogers smiled. "I actually used to know Mrs. Read when she was a little girl. We lived in the same neighborhood back then."

"Cool," Henry smiled back. "Good seeing you again, Mr. Rogers. Maybe we'll see each other before the holiday is through."

"That would be nice," Mr. Rogers smiled. "Enjoy your stay."

And so, the groups split up.

"Doesn't this look great, boy?" Kasey smiled to Shake on the way throughout town.

* * *

Shake smiled back as he took a look around town as it looked very festive and quite happy for the upcoming holidays. It was a dark winter night, but the bright holiday lights helped make it look aglow as people were out spending the final days until the 25th in their own, special way. Tim and Sally Botsford came to the toy store to get their kids some special gifts, especially the Pretty Princess doll for Becky.

Mrs. Santos rushed home until Papa Bear noticed that she dropped a gift-wrapped box and he decided to pick it up for her. Miguel's friends Andy and Theo seemed to be staring from outside a toy store window to see a grand toy train set which looked very cool to them. Papa Bear finally caught up with Rosa as he tipped his hat to her to give back her fallen box.

A toy shop van came by Dot and Dash's house as a man dressed as an elf came out the door to make a special delivery. As the two siblings got the door, they smiled and picked up the gifts that were sent to them. A mother smiled as she rode off home with a tree over the car as Max and Emmy excitedly sat in the back with their tree that they were bringing home for the holidays. Finally, Henry, Alexandra, Kasey, and Shake made it to the Read household which was decorated for the big holiday.

* * *

"Well, this is it." Henry smiled before he rang the doorbell.

The group waited at the door before Mrs. Read came to the door with a small smile.

"Hello, Mrs. Read," Alexandra smiled. "Guess we don't need to ask if DW or Arthur are home."

"Of course," Jane laughed before she hugged them. "We weren't expecting guests at Christmas this year except for maybe my father and Dave's mother."

"Well, we look forward to meeting them," Henry replied. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas to you too," Jane smiled. "Please come on in. We have a guest room, but some of you will have to stay with Arthur and DW in their rooms. Is that okay?"

"Oh, that sounds a lot like my old place when I was on the road with Pop and my brothers and sisters before we came to CN City." Henry replied.

"Yes, but from what I've heard, this might be less crowded," Jane giggled. "Hello there, dear."

"Hello, Mrs. Read," Kasey smiled. "It feels good to spend Christmas in a different place. It'll be a brand new adventure for sure."

"So it will be," Jane replied. "I also see you have a dog too."

"Yes, his name is Shake," Kasey smiled down at the male poodle who was her and Alexandra's pet now. "He's a very cool dog."

Shake smiled bashfully from this.

"What a handsome dog he is." Jane added.

Shake looked even more bashful from that.

"Please, come in," Jane said to them. "It's pretty late, so I hope you planned out on where to sleep."

"Is there enough in the guest room for two?" Alexandra asked. "I'd really like to keep an eye on Kasey for the night."

"Hmm... That could work... Two sisters in one room," Jane remarked. "That's what we do for DW and her baby sister, Kate."

Alexandra and Kasey smiled from that.

"As for me, I'll bunk with Arthur," Henry said as he came in to see the boy who felt like a little brother to him. "If that's alright with him of course."

"I'm sure it will be," Jane smiled. "It'll be bedtime soon. Lots to do before Christmas."

"Right." Henry and Alexandra nodded to that.

* * *

They soon came to the Read house as Arthur was seen to be playing on the piano in the living room. Alexandra and Kasey came to see what DW was up to as Arthur and Henry quickly caught up with each other.

"Ah, Christmas..." Arthur sighed happily as he played the keys. "Only three more days until the big day."

"Hard to believe," Henry said. "It gets closer and closer the older you get, and I should know since I just turned 18."

"This one's gonna be the best one ever." Arthur smiled to Henry.

Henry smiled back as he hoped that Arthur would have a great Christmas as he also hoped the same for him, Alexandra, Kasey, and the others. Arthur soon sang himself a little song about how he wanted the perfect Christmas this year, though that felt like wishful thinking so far.

"Arthur!" DW called out which startled the boy out of his reverie. "What are you doing? Why are you so calm? Don't you know there are only _three_ days 'til Christmas?"

"I'm glad you know how a calendar works." Henry teased quietly.

"So?" Arthur asked his little sister.

"So... There's work to be done!" DW said firmly. "You have to help me write my wishlist to Santa!"

"This should be interesting," Alexandra said. "Is there anything special you'd like for Christmas, Kasey?"

"Just to have a special Christmas in PBS Town." Kasey smiled thoughtfully.

Alexandra smiled back from that, though she looked soft as DW tried to find a way to start her letter.

"Hmm... _'My Dearest Santa_'..." DW thought out loud. "No, no, no... That's too gushy. How about... _'Hiya, Santa!'_... Aww... That's _way_ too friendly..." she said before she came to her big brother with desperation. "Come on, Arthur, I need ideas! I've only had four Christmases in my whole life... **WHAT SHOULD I WRITE?!**"

"Well... Everything will be _almost_ perfect..." Arthur sighed a bit from that.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day soon came. Due to the circumstances, Jenny decided to come to school with Arthur to check it out to maybe make some new friends outside of back home. Kasey also decided to go with her. Henry offered to go to the Mall later with Jane and Arthur to help Arthur do a little shopping like a surrogate big brother for the time being while Alexandra decided to help out DW a little as she seemed unsure about her current Christmas list.

"DW, come on!" Jane called out as she beeped the horn from the car as DW was by the mailbox. "We're gonna be late for school."

"We should go, DW," Alexandra told the four-year-old girl. "I'll see you after school."

"Can't you come with me?" DW pouted.

"Sorry, DW, but the girls and I are gonna do a little shopping for our friends outside of PBS Town," Alexandra replied. "I promise I'll see you after school though."

"Hmm... Okay..." DW said softly as she came to her mother's car. "Bye, Alexandra."

"See ya, DW," Alexandra replied before she decided to go off with Josie, Melody, and Valerie. "Well, I better get something special for Henry."

"I'll get something for his brother Stanley," Melody giggled. "He's so cute. How about you, Valerie? Are you gonna shop for something special?"

"I guess just for my family," Valerie shrugged as they walked off to the local Mall together. "I guess you'll get something for Tabitha and Alan, huh, Josie?"

"Oh, but of course," Josie smiled. "I just hope I find something good for all of them."

"I'm sure you will." Alexandra replied as they walked off together.

"You wrote Santa Claus, right? Not Santa Cruz," DW asked her big brother as she came into the car. "I don't want it to go to the wrong place."

"Yes, DW," Arthur rolled his eyes slightly before he leaned forward. "Mom, could you turn on the radio? I wanna see if it's gonna snow."

Jane did as her son asked of her as she turned on the car radio. However, it was not a weather report. It was a very annoying commercial jingle for a toy called Tina the Talking Tabby. DW loved it, but of course, Arthur did not. Winston soon followed after the Read car to get over to PBS Town's school, though it was a long ride for Arthur.

"I sure hope that Georgette, Shake, and Oliver are getting along with Pal," Jenny said to Kasey. "I'm sure they are though. He seems like a nice puppy."

"Yeah, he really does," Kasey smiled. "I'm sure they're all having fun in their own way. I can't wait to hear how PBS Town celebrates the holidays."

"Me too," Jenny smiled back. "It'll be cool to go to a different school for the day since my school already got off about a week ago."

"Yeah, crazy how these guys are still in school." Kasey remarked.

* * *

Eventually, everybody was dropped off as a new limo drove by.

"Is that Winston?" Kasey asked Jenny.

"It can't be." Jenny replied.

"That should be Muffy." Arthur said.

"Who's Muffy?" Kasey asked.

"Muffy Crosswire," Arthur replied. "Her father's a car salesman, so she's the richest girl in school."

"Francine!" The rich girl called out as she rushed over to her tomboy best friend with a big smile. "Hi, Francine. Only one more day until my big party. Aren't you excited?"

"Muffy, I already told you I can't-" Francine tried to tell her.

"Oh, there's George!" Muffy pointed out before she ran that way. "I forgot to invite him."

"Hmm..." Francine firmly pouted from that.

"Hey, Francine, what's wrong?" Arthur asked as he came towards the tomboy.

"Muffy! That's what's wrong!" Francine glared sharply. "She still thinks I'm coming to her party, even though I told her I can't go."

"Uh, why not?" Kasey asked.

"Because my family's having a Hanukkah Party tomorrow," Francine explained. "We do it every year when we light the last candle on the Menorrah."

"Maybe you need to tell her again?" Jenny suggested.

"I already told her like a million times. It doesn't do any good. Watch." Francine replied as she came to talk with Muffy to show them what would happen.

"Okay, see ya there, George!" Muffy called out after she had invited the boy.

"Muffy, I'm not coming to your party tomorrow." Francine stated simply to her best friend.

"Oh, guess what? I got The Squabs!" Muffy beamed out of excitement to prove Francine's point as she walked towards the school door. "You know, the rock band. It's going to be so cool."

"See what I mean? It's like talking to a wall!" Francine groaned before she turned around. "Arthur?"

"Uh... He just left..." Kasey shrugged. "Sorry about that, uh, Francine."

"Yeah, sorry." Jenny added.

"Ugh... It's okay..." Francine sighed. "I just wish Muffy would listen to me. We're supposed to be best friends."

"That name does sound familiar though... Crosswire..." Jenny said as the bell rang which made them come into the school. "I'll probably ask my parents if they know anybody by that name."

"Sorry about Muffy though, Francine." Kasey said to the tomboy.

"It's okay... At least you guys listen to me..." Francine said as they walked to class together which would be Mr. Ratburn's class.

* * *

In the classroom, the students were all sharing their holiday traditions with each other.

"And in Sweden, they have a parade early in the morning on December 13th," George told his classmates as he wore baubles on his antlers. "Where people follow the Queen of Light who wears a crown of candles."

"Hmm... That sounds pretty cool..." Kasey commented.

"It does sound magical." Jenny added.

"My grandparents sent me some Lutefisk; fish that's been dried and boiled," George said as he unrolled a tin of a very smelly fish as he gave it to share with his classmates. "Pass it around!"

Nobody wanted any of it though, except for maybe Arthur's best friend, Buster Baxter.

"Gross, man!" Miguel groaned. "It smells like something that would come out of Oscar the Grouch's trashcan!"

"Miguel, don't be rude," Maya told her twin brother. "Sure, it might smell funny, but it's George's tradition."

"I just know that it better stay out of my way." Dash shuddered.

"So, uh, we don't exactly have Christmas where I come from." Landon said to his classmates.

"Oh, yeah?" Angelina asked. "What do you do then? I can't wait for my upcoming ballet with my friends at Miss Lilly's Dance Studio."

"Yeah, yeah, good for you, Angelina Ballerina," Landon rolled his eyes. "Anyway... We pretty much celebrate a special night called Starlight Night."

"What's that?" Kasey asked as she raised her hand.

"It's the annual holiday when all the stars in Cyberspace are refreshed for the new year." Landon replied.

"Yeah, and your Uncle Hacker tried to darken all of the stars in Cyberspace forever." Inez grumbled.

"Aw... You don't have to be mad at me for that," Landon smirked a bit. "You can always forgive me. I don't care what Buzz and Delete say."

"Yeah... No." Inez groaned.

"Your loss," Landon smirked. "There's always next year."

Inez just shuddered in disgust from that.

"Also, the penguins learn how to fly and deliver gifts," Landon told the others. "So, uh, that's your happy holiday from me."

The class shrugged to each other as he came to sit down. Miguel had a bit of a dreamy look in his eyes as Becky Botsford decided to go up next as there was still some time.

"So, my family usually celebrates a cheese festivity together," Becky smiled to everybody. "It's a lot of fun, especially when we gather by the tree and sing songs together."

"I bet a lot of cheese is fun for you, Becky." Miguel smiled dreamily.

"Oh, it is, Miguel," Becky replied which made Miguel gasp as his biggest crush was talking right at him. "I can tell that you and your sister enjoy your own festivities as Santa and an elf."

"Oh, we sure do!" Maya beamed as she hugged her twin brother right away.

"Mayaaaa..." Miguel groaned as that felt embarrassing for Becky to witness.

"Let's just hope that Dr. Two-Brains doesn't mess up this year's holiday or I-... I mean WordGirl will have to lock him up!" Becky smiled nervously.

"Right... WordGirl..." Miguel smiled bashfully.

"Every Christmas, my parents and I work at a soup kitchen and help feed homeless people," Binky told the others as he carried a covered up treat in his hands. "This year, I get to make dessert."

Mr. Ratburn sniffed happily as he could smell something delicious.

"Presenting the Binky Barnes' Pecan Pie!" Binky announced as he showed his dessert. "Any volunteers?"

The class looked excited as well as Mr. Ratburn as they came to try some of the pie. However, the pie was not as good as it looked as there was some sort of problem with the pie.

"I believe you have to shell the pecans, Binky." Mr. Ratburn advised after he spit his piece out into a napkin.

"Huh..." Binky said like that was news to him.

"It's pretty good for a first try though." Jenny smiled softly.

"I like it!" Buster smiled after he ate his slice.

Arthur looked like he didn't want to risk it as he pushed his pie slice away.

"Okay, class, before you leave for vacation, there's still the matter of homework." Mr. Ratburn told his class.

"Aww!" The class let out a collective groan from that.

"I've decided not to assign you any reading." Mr. Ratburn then said.

"Yaaay!" The class cheered from that.

"Aww..." Becky pouted from that as she loved to read.

"Instead, you can write a five-page essay describing what you did what you did, over the holidays." Mr. Ratburn then continued as the bell rang.

* * *

Everybody came to the hallway to get ready to go home for the holidays.

"Well, that was interesting." Kasey said to Jenny.

"Yeah, it sure was." Jenny agreed.

"I knew it was too good to be true," Arthur sighed about the homework assignment as he emptied his locker before smiling hopefully at his best friend. "Hey, I have to do some shopping. You wanna come?"

"Nah... I'm going right to bed..." Buster said with a yawn.

"You look so tired," Kasey said to him. "Are you that tired from school?"

"My mother woke me up at 6:00 this morning," Buster explained tiredly. "She thought it was Christmas!"

"She did?" The three asked from surprise.

"Yeah, it's happened every year since my parents got divorced," Buster replied. "On the days right before Christmas, my mom starts getting up _reeeally_ early. She cooks pancakes and puts out all the presents. Then I tell her it's only December 23rd and she goes back to bed."

"Weird..." Arthur replied.

"I think she just gets nervous that I won't have a good Christmas because my dad's not with us." Buster sighed.

"That's too bad." Kasey said softly.

"Yeah... Sometimes I wish Christmas wasn't such a big deal." Buster sighed as he got the door for them as they saw a big fuss which involved a certain rich girl.

"Aw, jeez, look at this." Kasey face-palmed.

A royal fanfare soon played as Muffy came out of her limo, dressed like a princess as she held a megaphone.

"Man, and I thought Eileen went overboard." Becky commented to Violet who nodded to that.

"Who's Eileen?" Kasey asked.

"Trust me, you do _not_ wanna know." Becky shuddered a bit with Violet.

"I, Muffy, the Princess of Christmas, invite one and all to my holiday extravaganza!" Muffy announced to her fellow students.

"Her what?" Binky asked Lionel who stood next to her.

"My party!" Muffy said like it was obvious. "It's at 5:00 tomorrow! Presents for everyone!"

Kasey and Jenny glanced at each other, not sure how to feel about that.

Muffy knocked on the limo roof to make her driver drive them back home before she spotted her best friend among the crowd. "Oh, Francine, why don't you come early so you can help me set up?" she then suggested.

"But Muffy! I told you I can't come!" Francine called back.

Muffy waved as she rode off, yet again ignoring her best friend's claims.

"Ugh... Why won't she listen!?" Francine complained.

"Lutefisk?" George offered to her.

* * *

Later on, Henry came with Arthur and Jane to the Mall while Alexandra and the girls kept an eye on DW. DW really liked Georgette and wished that she could be the family dog instead of Pal, but also really like Oliver since she had always wanted a kitten. Of course, with it being very close to Christmas, the mall was very packed that day.

"Wooow!" Henry and Arthur gasped together.

"Wait 'til you see the line for the bathroom," Jane said to the boys before she took out her wristwatch. "Okay, let's synchronize our watches. 3:15?"

"Check." Henry and Arthur replied.

"Okay, meet you guys back at the candy cane at exactly one hour." Jane advised.

And at that, the three split up, though Henry stayed close with Arthur. He had already shopped for his family back home, so he decided to get something nice for Alexandra while he was here.

"Stick by me, Arthur," Henry advised. "You could easily get lost in a place like this."

"I can believe that," Arthur replied. "It's crazy in here."

"Oh! Excuse us," Henry said as he and Arthur passed by before they came to a TV which showed a commercial for a new product on sale. "Hmm... What's this?" he wondered a bit.

_"It shreds! It shreds! It matches! It juliennes! It even cooks for you!"_ The TV exclaimed as it showed a special product on display._ "It's an entire kitchen at the press of a button! It's The Veggienator! Now on sale for only $5.99!"_

"Huh. Pretty good price for being so close to Christmastime." Henry remarked.

"Wow! That's perfect for Dad!" Arthur beamed as he came to see the store clerk. "Uh, excuse me, sir?"

"Sorry, we're sold out." The store clerk sighed as he already knew what Arthur had come to him for.

"Aww..." Arthur groaned.

Henry frowned a bit from that.

"But allow me to show you something else," The store clerk offered as he took out a different kitchen tool as a possible substitute as he demonstrated what it could do. "Yes, sir! Selling like hotcakes."

"Uh... What is it?" Henry asked.

"Uncle Niko's Olive De-Pitter!" The store clerk replied as he took one out with an olive to use before the pit flew out and hit Arthur in the face lightly. "You just stick an olive in and out pops the pit!"

"Um... I don't know..." Arthur paused thoughtfully.

"I'll throw in the olives?" The store clerk offered.

Arthur gave a small smile from that.

"But for free, right?" Henry asked.

"Why, of course, sir," The store clerk replied. "It's the holidays after all."

Arthur and Henry thought that worked out just fine as the young boy decided to buy that for his father's Christmas present this year.

* * *

"Only one more present to go," Arthur smiled. "Hmm... What to get Mom?"

"Maybe some jewelry or some perfume?" Henry suggested. "My mother always loved getting gifts like that from my old man."

"Hey!" Arthur said as he spotted something before running off suddenly.

"Oh! Arthur, don't run away from me like that!" Henry warned as he ran after the young boy before they came to a shop window. "Okay, what's the fuss all about?"

"Hey, it's that little glass bird I broke last summer." Arthur pointed out.

"You broke a glass bird?" Henry asked.

"Well, I didn't mean to," Arthur replied. "I was just playing with DW and it sorta fell."

"Hmm..." Henry shrugged from that before he saw something that he would love to give to Alexandra. "Ooh, that's good too. You get that bird and I'll get my surprise for Alex."

"Okay!" Arthur replied as he came to see the store clerk who looked like a familiar bank teller which big blonde hair with hoop earrings. "Ms. Tilapiaez? I thought you worked at the bank."

"I thought I could use a break from the villains that WordGirl has to stop all the time, what can I do for you?" Ms. Tilapiaez replied.

While that was going on, Henry took a look at the rings there where Reginald was, polishing the gemstones on the rings.

"Excuse me, sir, but do you have a Zircon, Tanzanite, or Turquoise ring?" Henry asked. "It's for a very special someone."

"Hmm... I should... Zircon is very popular this time of year, especially blue, please wait here." Reginald said as he walked off briefly.

"This'll be the best Christmas ever for Alex." Henry smiled hopefully to himself.

"I hope so too." A voice muffled.

"Huh? Who said that?" Henry asked before he checked his bag to see a very familiar-looking kitten. "Oh, hi, Oliver... Wait, Oliver?! What are you doing in there?"

"I thought I'd see what you were doing," Oliver replied. "So why are you buying a ring for Alexandra?"

"It's a long story, I'll tell you later, please stay in there," Henry said as he tried to hide the kitten. "I don't wanna get you in trouble or have us thrown out."

"Aww... I never get to do anything!" Oliver pouted.

Eventually, Reginald came back as Henry grinned nervously as he hid Oliver just in time. "You're in luck, sir," he then said as he showed a blue ring to Henry. "Will this do?"

"Oh, yes, thank you," Henry replied. "How much do I owe you then?"

"That'll be $773.00." Reginald requested.

"Whoof... There's the Christmas inflammation I was talking about..." Henry said, but luckily, he had a lot of money.

"My, my... Surprised to see a young man your age with so much money," Reginald remarked. "You must be as rich as the Crosswire family."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Henry replied. "I actually play in band sometimes with my brothers and sisters."

"Hmm... I see..." Reginald replied. "Well, Merry Christmas, young man."

"Merry Christmas, sir," Henry smiled as he came to get Arthur, but he was already gone. "Ugh! Where did that kid go now?"

Henry soon ran after Arthur as they began to run out of time to meet Mrs. Read. Luckily, they remembered they had to go to a red candy cane with elves at Santa's Workshop because there were other candy canes such as the giant green one at the Winter Wonderland and the giant pink one at the Reindeer Stables. It was also 4:13, so they were a little early, luckily enough.

* * *

"Right on time," Jane smiled at both of them. "Did you get everything you needed?"

"Yep." Arthur replied.

"How about you, Mrs. Read?" Henry added.

"Well... Almost everything..." Jane pouted slightly. "There was just one thing that was all sold out."


	4. Chapter 4

Back at the Read house, Jane knew that there would be a tough time to talk with DW about what she wanted the most for Christmas, so she tried to make it a bit easier on herself by giving her daughter some chocolate chip cookies to make it easier to tell her.

"I just remember when I was a little girl and I wanted the new Fantasy Darbie House with a new doll and her boyfriend Ben, I had a bit of a fit," Alexandra said to Jane. "But good luck with that."

"Thank you, Alexandra..." Jane sighed as that didn't exactly make her feel any better.

"I'd just say use the direct approach," Josie suggested. "Who knows? Maybe she'll understand. I have my own little sister."

"Yeah, but Tabitha's never been a DW," Alexandra replied. "That girl might like me, but she can be dangerous without warning from when I babysat with Henry the last time."

"Ooh! Cookies!" Melody giggled as she had some.

"Don't eat them all now," Jane told the blonde girl. "I need some of those for DW."

"Sorry, I can't help it," Melody smiled sweetly. "These are the best cookies I've ever had."

"Well, I'm glad you like them," Jane smiled back before she called out a bit. "DW, could you come in here, please?"

Eventually, DW came over to see what her mother wanted.

"This will be a challenge," Valerie said to Josie, Alexandra, and Melody. "I can tell. I have a new little step-brother around his age from when we lived in FOX Acres."

The teenage girls soon left the kitchen so that the mother and daughter could talk, but they listened in a bit.

* * *

"Now DW, you know that Santa can't always get exactly the thing you want." Jane started out softly as DW took out a cookie to eat it.

"Why?" DW asked worriedly. "Because I've been bad?"

"No, DW, you haven't been bad," Jane smiled softly. "It's just that... Well... There are a lot of children wishing for the same thing and-"

"It's because Arthur wrote my letter all wrong, isn't it?" DW glared as she broke the cookie in her hands in half. "Boy, if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself!"

Jane let out a small sigh from that while the girls looked to each other, but before anything else could be said or done, Arthur and DW's father soon rushed inside.

"Hey, everyone, I've got a big surprise," David smiled as he took out a video tape. "Uncle Fred's video Christmas card."

"Christmas cards come in video now?" Melody asked with surprise. "Gosh, I guess Judy Jetson makes a good point about technology taking over the future. Before we know it, we'll all be just like her family."

"Ah, Melody..." Valerie and Josie sighed from that while Alexandra rolled her eyes from that.

* * *

Everybody met together in the living room. The family sat on the couch while their guests sat on the floor with the pets. The video tape was soon put in the VCR so that they could all watch the video.

"Fred is my brother," Jane told the guests. "He lives far away from here, but sometimes he'll visit once in a while."

"That sounds nice," Henry replied. "I have an uncle who lives far away too. He's an archaeologist."

**_"Is this thing on? Oh, it is!"_** A male aardvark glared as he punched the screen before he smiled happily.**_ "Hi, Sis! Hi, David, Arthur, DW, and of course, widdle Kate~"_**

Baby Kate happily cooed from that.

**_"It's me, your Uncle Fred!"_ **The man beamed before a barking was heard next to him before he showed a dog with him, dressed like he was now with sunglasses and a flower shirt with a flower lei around their necks with shorts and sandals. **_"And Rory!"_**

The dog barked happily before he tried to sniff the camera.

**_"We're sorry, but we can't be with you this Christmas,"_ **Uncle Fred then said.**_ "Because we're going to-"_**

"Hawaii?!" Arthur and DW asked hopefully.

**_"Florida!"_** Uncle Fred then said as he stretched his arms, but accidentally hit the lamp off the table which knocked out the lights.**_ "What the heck was that?! Hey! Who turned out the lights?"_**

Rory sniffed the camera and began to open his mouth over the camera.

**_"Hey! Rory, no! That's not a dog treat!"_ **Uncle Fred cried out as Rory soon ate the camera which was the end of the video.

The family soon shared a laugh from the video, along with the others.

* * *

"Dogs." Oliver rolled his eyes.

"Ahem!" Georgette and Shake glared a bit.

"Oh, I was just kidding, guys," Oliver chuckled sheepishly to the poodle siblings. "You know I'm practically one of the dogs."

"Sure... For now..." Georgette replied.

"Oh, that Fred..." Jane smiled a bit as she held her baby daughter.

"He's _so _funny!" DW added.

"Remember last Christmas when he stepped on the tea-set that Dad got for Mom?" Arthur smiled out of amusement.

"That wasn't so funny..." David remarked before there was a knock at the door so he decided to get it. "Hello?"

"Pardon me, Mr. Read, but I'm here to get everybody going back to the hotel." Winston said to the man of the house.

"Oh, yes, of course, Winston," David replied before he called out. "Last call for a ride back to the PBS Hotel!"

"That's us," Valerie said. "See ya later, Henry and Alexandra."

"You're coming to that Christmas party, right?" Henry asked. "We're going with Arthur."

"Sure, I'm sure we can make it," James smiled as he helped his little sister with her coat. "Thanks again for having us, Mr. and Mrs. Read."

"You're very welcome, James," Jane smiled back. "It's so good to meet you."

Eventually, the others left with Winston to go for a ride back to the hotel just as the oven went off.

"Dinner!" David called from that. "It's your favorite, Arthur."

"Well, I hope we all like it too in that case." Henry replied.

"Oh, I'm sure you will," David said. "I'm a bit of a gourmet chef."

"So we've heard." Alexandra replied from that.

* * *

And at that, they all came to the dinner to have a special Christmas feast before the official Christmas dinner. The food looked and smelled so good so far with some turkey and all sorts of vegetables with rolls.

"But won't Christmas dinner be boring if we have the same thing tonight?" Arthur spoke up.

"He has a point." Henry said from that.

"Your father was thinking of doing something a little different this year." Jane informed as she took her seat.

"We're going to have a really authentic Christmas dinner," David added as he explained what his wife meant for him. "The kind they might've eaten in Bethlehem when Jesus was born."

"Did they by any chance have pumpkin pie back then?" Alexandra asked. "Aunt Nanny used to make that for us."

"No, the pumpkin is a new world vegetable," David clarified as they passed the food around to share together before he took out a special book. "But with the help of this History of Cooking book, I think I can put together a special meal."

"Well, this should be interesting," Henry said. "I'm used to getting apples for the holidays."

"Apples?" DW asked like he was crazy. "Why apples?"

"That's part of my family holiday tradition," Henry explained. "Santa Claus, or as we call him 'Sheng dan lao Ren' allows us to give apples on Ping'an Ye. That's what we call Christmas Eve."

"Thank you for sharing that with us, Henry." Jane smiled politely while DW seemed to roll her eyes about getting apples for Christmas.

"Aunt Nanny always told me and Alexander wonderful stories about her home country and cultures around the holidays." Alexandra smiled.

"You never mentioned an Aunt Nanny before?" Henry said to his girlfriend. "Who's this Aunt Nanny lady?"

"I never talked about her before? I'm sorry," Alexandra replied. "Aunt Nanny was hired by my father after we moved to Riverdale. He thought my brother and I could've used a mother figure, so he hired her to cook, clean, and look out for us. Of course, I haven't seen her since after Josie and the Pussycats took off. She's just gone."

"Like your mother." Henry said softly.

"Yes... Pretty much..." Alexandra replied.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you, uh, lose your mother?" Jane asked Alexandra.

"Not in that way, it's a long story, but this isn't about me," Alexandra said. "Please, go on, Mr. Read."

"Christmas is all about tradition, it's okay," David smiled as he looked through his book. "Let's see... We could have roast lamb with turmeic unleavened bread and pulse: an ancient Roman dish made from mashed chickpeas and wheat. Mm... Sounds great!"

Henry and Arthur shared a look with each other as they felt unsure about this year's Christmas dinner.

"And chocolate-covered dates!" David smiled as he continued.

"Well, chocolate is always good." Alexandra replied.

"Oh... Oh, sorry, no chocolate," David then said. "That's an Aztec food."

"It'll be fun!" Jane smiled as she fed Kate some food. "Arthur?"

"I guess..." Arthur shrugged.

This was going to be an interesting Christmas indeed.

* * *

The next day soon came and it was December 23rd, or probably best known as Christmas Eve Eve AKA The Day Before the Night Before Christmas. Kasey took Shake for a walk as she followed DW down the street to deliver a new letter for Santa as they passed by what looked like a small manor, but there lived a mischievous bunch. There was a bit of an older girl around the ages of 10 or 12 as she was in the yard with twin boys around DW's age best known as the Tibble twins.

"Hey, look, Timmy~" Tommy smirked at his twin brother. "DW's delivering a letter to Santa!"

"What a baby!" Timmy added.

"Are you asking for a new rattle?" Tommy smirked with his brother. "Maybe a bib and a pacfier for your new friends too."

"For your information, this is NOT a letter to Santa," DW glared at them. "It's to, um, The President of the United States, so there!"

"Oh..." Tommy said to Timmy who looked baffled with his brother. "So he's the one that gets us all the presents."

"Hey, sorry about that, kid," The older girl said to Kasey. "My brothers didn't bother ya, did they?"

"No, it's okay," Kasey replied as she walked Shake. "You okay?"

"Meh, I'll be fine," The girl replied. "I got a lot on my mind. Name's Tammy Tibble."

"Kasey Cabot," The redheaded girl said as they shook hands. "I'm here with a bit of extended family."

"Heh, I could say the same for me," Tammy smirked. "I'm with Tommy and Timmy and Grandma all the time."

"What about your parents?" Kasey asked curiously.

"Pfft... I don't wanna talk about that right now..." Tammy rolled her eyes. "At least I get to go to a cool Christmas party away from Tweedledum and Tweedledumber."

"Hey!" The Tibble twins cried out from that.

"You two gonna stop me?" Tammy smirked as she walked off with a cocky chuckle.

Kasey shrugged as she kept walking off with Shake.

"You're Tweedledum." Tommy told his brother.

"That makes _you_ Tweedledumber!" Timmy glared.

"Does not!"

"Does too! Tammy said so!"

"You're dumber!"

"No, you are!"

The Tibble twins then fell to the ground together and tackled each other as they got into a fight with each other. Then again, that was almost always the case for Tommy and Timmy.

"Don't let me down, Santa," DW whispered hopefully. "I'm counting on you."


End file.
